Los Angeles daily herald., 1887-03-12
CATARRH

THE TERM CATARRH IS APPLIED TO
l. a peculiar disorder of the nostiils 0nd
adjacent parts, which prevails to an alarm
ing extent and is productive of very serious
consequences.
The most prominent and characteristic
feature Is q morbid discharge from the
head. varying In its nature at different
times.
In some there is an almost constant flow
OF clear, acrfd fluid, but oftener an offensive,
purulent or muco-purulent, greeni ish-yelloW
matter is secreted, which accumulates in
the nostrils or drops into the throat, neces-
stating its frequent removal by blowing the
nose or expectoration, and often by both
processes. Sometimes patients feel as
though their whole head was in a state OF
rottenness, so great is the amount of matter
discharged and so fetid is its odor. The
patient is. greatly annoyed by the constant
ter from the head, and as recumbent posi-
ton naturally favors the flow downward.
his rest is frequently disturbed from this
cause. Many sufferers are Obliged to lie
with the head very much elevated in order
to sleep with some degree of comfort.
In others tough. viscd and offensive
phlegm collects behind and above the soft
palate, in the passage between the throat
ish tenacity. Its lodgment embarrasses
respiration and creates a sens ,tion of irri.
tation and uneasiness i'll the affected local
ity, which gives rise to a constant and al
most irresistible desire to relieve the dis
throat so as to eject It by the mouth. This
practice. popularity known as hawking"
is characteristic of catarrh, and proves as
embarrassing to the one affected as it is
disagreeable to those around him.
Again, the offensive matter hardens and
deposits itself on the membrane in the
81 ape of dry, hard concretions, which are
discharged by way of the nostrils or throat
in Jumps or fragments of deep green tint.
In some cases these incrustati0ns accumu-
late to such an extent as to form a regular
plug in the nose, which obstructs breathing
and produces serious discomfort. So firm
ly do these incrustati0ns adhere to the
point of attachment that their removal
usually requires the most vitlent efforts;
not unfrequenlly q ey have to be torn from
the mem brane. Occasionally solid cast
of notable size is expelled, on which there
are generally traces of blood. but in some
cases the cast presents q tubular appear.
ance, being OF exact shape of the nasal
cavity. This condition is indicative of ul-
ceration, which. in time, may destroy the
bony st ucture of the nose and produce
subsequent flattening OF that organ.
Gases are occasionally met with in which
a thick, viscid, Shiny secretion coats the
mem brane of the nasal cavities and then
putrifies, giving rise to stencil which is
really oyerpowering and sufficiently fetid to
poison the atmosphere of whole room;
and there are others in which all the secre-
tions of the membrane are suspended, caus-
ing an unpleasant feeling of dryness, heat
condition popularity known as DRY Ca
tarrh.''
The disease speedily extends to the air
cavities OF the bones OF the forehead and
face, giving rise to n distressing sensation
of h avy weight. or compression over the
forehead, especially in the region above
and between the eyes, and TO u feeling of
fulness, heat, irritation, soreness or pain in
well as in the upper part of the throat,
above and behind the soft palate. Some-
times there is pain obstinately fixed in some
particular part, as in the temple, on the top
hind the orbids, and occasionally pain
manifests itself Ia the face of so severe a
character that it is frequently mistaken for
neuralgia.
assumes an exceeding fetid and sickening
odor. In some cases 1t becomes 30 revolt.
ingly offensive as to render the sufferer an
object OF disgust to himself as well as to
others.
The nasal membrane is thickened and
congested, causing the nose to be stopped
up, sometimes on one side, sometime on the
other, and often on both,. giving rise to a
disagreeable, stuffy sensation in the head,
and occasioning violent and prolonged
parOxysms of sneeZing.
The voice is weak. indistinct and husky
or OF a nasal character. di playing sort of
tinuous hoarseness and discordance There
is also sense of irritation in the throat,
and frequent attempts to clear the parts Of
phlegm, producing the sound hem" more
or less forcibly. In some cases patients
complain of an uncomfortable feeling of
fullness, or choky ensation In the throat,
and in Others of distressing and almost
constant dryness. for the temporary relief
of which they have to swallow frequently.
Others, again, speak OF constant bad or
nauseoUs taste in the mouth or throat.
The stomach generally suffers mole or
less and becomes weak and irritable; the
to tAsA IL nIx.
bad in the morning The patient is Ian
euid, unable to perform mental or physical
labor with the usual facility, is nervous, de
pressed In spirits, at times fearful. timid,
agitated and inclined to drowsiness and
sleep, the memory weakened and perma
nenf i'm apartment seriously threatened.
The mucous membrane soon becomes
morbidly sensitive to unfavorable inda
comes affected from the slightest causes, so
that at last breath of wind upon the Inning
of the no. g or throat becomes productive OF
cold, and gives rise to serious disturb
patient is subject to frequent and repeated
colds, each attack aggravating the disease
by giving it new impulse and involving a
larger extent or surface than Its predecessor
organ to organ, invading the throat, larnyx
trachea and bronchial tubes, until, en-
croaching further and further. it reaches
the finer ramifcations OF the broucbi, when
uut sii6ht ihlpuisC 10 icquifeu W stuu II
to the lungs. Catarrh may, and often does,
affect other organs in the body, especially
those containing mucous membrane, suct
as the stomach, bowels, kidneys, etc.
By the employment of proper inhalation
in the form of medicated vapor (not steam
or spray) we are able to produce immediat.
and direct action upon the diseased surface
in the pharynx and nas4l passages, for al
will find It's way into the most remote and
intricate cavities, where 1t is atterly impos.
sible to make fluid applications. By these
meaus every case can be cured.
oZENA.
Ozpna Is the professional or technical
name given to an advanced form of catarrh
in which liberation has eaten through the
membrane lining of the nose to the carti-
lage of the bone. Anv case OF catarrh may
end in eczema, but it most frequently. OCCURS
in those who are naturally scrofulous. Tho
discharge takes place through the nostrils
or through the throat. and is generally of
auently tinged with blood and almost al.
ways attended by an offensivesmell. In the
language of DR.. Wood, of Philadelphia,
THE disease is one of the most obdurate
and disagreeable which the physician has
to encounter. In bad cases the b eat h of the
patient becomes SO revolving as to isolate
him from society and to re nder him an OBJ
ject of disgust even to himself" In some
cases pieces of bone become separated and
slough off, leaving deep, unhealthy ulcers,
which secrete a bloody matter, and are ex.
tremeiy difficult to heal. After oznna has
continued some time the sense of smell
usually becomes impaired and often lost,
Deafness is one of its most common conse-
IT,